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Post by FannyMare on Feb 21, 2019 22:15:40 GMT
The chief of police said this "Why would anyone, especially an African-American man, use the symbolism of a noose to make false accusations? How could someone look at the hatred and suffering associated with that symbol and see an opportunity to manipulate that symbol to further his own public profile?" Right? I don't know what's wrong with Jussie..that his mind went there.
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Post by Kao on Feb 21, 2019 22:38:01 GMT
The chief of police said this "Why would anyone, especially an African-American man, use the symbolism of a noose to make false accusations? How could someone look at the hatred and suffering associated with that symbol and see an opportunity to manipulate that symbol to further his own public profile?" This is what pisses me off the most about this. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center hate crimes are up 30% since two years ago, and there are already people who believe every hate crime is a hoax. Why do something like this? He just made it that much harder for real victims.
Onto something else:
I read about that Gwyneth Paltrow incident and she is a real piece of work. Even if what she says is true (he skiied into her) instead of checking to see if he's okay you chide him, them go on your merry way without checking to see if he's okay or needs assistance? He suffered 4 broken ribs, brain damage, and other injuries. How self-centered do you have to be?
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lonnie
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Post by lonnie on Feb 21, 2019 23:25:57 GMT
JUSSIE SMOLLETT MUG SHOT RELEASED Cops About to Explain Arrest"The Police Superintendent just expressed his outrage at Jussie Smollett for allegedly betraying the African American and LGBT communities to further his career in a "publicity stunt." The Superintendent just said Smollett created the ruse because "he was dissatisfied with his salary."" I am African American, so I understand how he betrayed us, but I also think he betrayed everyone. Police resources were used to investigate this while others in the community may have needed them. This makes me sick. That is true, the resources could have been used elsewhere... especially in a place like Chicago which is ridden with a very high amount of violence from constant gang shootings and other crime.
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Post by acookertv on Feb 21, 2019 23:39:18 GMT
The chief of police said this "Why would anyone, especially an African-American man, use the symbolism of a noose to make false accusations? How could someone look at the hatred and suffering associated with that symbol and see an opportunity to manipulate that symbol to further his own public profile?" This is what pisses me off the most about this. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center hate crimes are up 30% since two years ago, and there are already people who believe every hate crime is a hoax. Why do something like this? He just made it that much harder for real victims.
Sure, people who react on emotion instead of reason will use this to claim other attacks are hoaxes. But among those who stand by reason, does this help dispel claims of hoaxes better? If the police were able to unravel this hoax as easily as they did (as they have with some others) does that not demonstrate that hoaxes are detectable, so without the evidence of a hoax it should be taken seriously?
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Post by Kao on Feb 22, 2019 0:28:58 GMT
JUSSIE SMOLLETT MUG SHOT RELEASED Cops About to Explain Arrest"The Police Superintendent just expressed his outrage at Jussie Smollett for allegedly betraying the African American and LGBT communities to further his career in a "publicity stunt." The Superintendent just said Smollett created the ruse because "he was dissatisfied with his salary."" I am African American, so I understand how he betrayed us, but I also think he betrayed everyone. Police resources were used to investigate this while others in the community may have needed them. This makes me sick. That is true, the resources could have been used elsewhere... especially in a place like Chicago which is ridden with a very high amount of violence from constant gang shootings and other crime. What on earth are you talking about? There aren't any "constant gang shootings" in fact, crime (including murders) has been way down for the past two years. Chicago is not "crime ridden" any more than any big city.
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lonnie
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Post by lonnie on Feb 22, 2019 0:41:05 GMT
66 people were shot in one weekend a few months ago in Chicago. If crime is 'way down' there, I'd hate to see what it used to be like. Gang violence is still a major concern in Chicago and many other places in the US.
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Post by Kao on Feb 22, 2019 0:51:05 GMT
66 people were shot in one weekend a few months ago in Chicago. If crime is 'way down' there, I'd hate to see what it used to be like. Gang violence is still a major concern in Chicago and many other places in the US. Yes, one particularly bad weekend. It's hardly like that the rest of the time, and as I mentioned before crime has gone way down; it's far from a crime-ridden hellhole. I actually live here (as opposed to Googling crime rates on cities/reading alt-right site info) but then again, what would I know? *shrugs*
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lonnie
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Post by lonnie on Feb 22, 2019 0:55:59 GMT
I didn't see just one article about one weekend, and they were from cnn and other MSM, which are far from "alt right". lol Thanks for your input though.
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Post by JosephD on Feb 22, 2019 3:32:33 GMT
I stand alone, I know, but I feel sorry for Jussie Smollett. This looks to me like a cry for help. I agree with those who question his mental stability. This isn't something a healthy person would choose to do. If found guilty, Empire will surely eliminate his character.
Jussie's career is all but over. No other show will take a chance on him because it wouldn't be worth the risk. He's negative publicity. He's angered too many people: LGBTQ community, black people, white people, MAGA hat wearers, as well as actual victims of crime. His record label won't want to keep him after this because he's not the level of talent that, despite this controversy, can rise above the drama and still pack concerts. He's hitting rock bottom and that's gotta hurt.
All of us have done something in our lives that we're ashamed of. Whether it be getting caught shoplifting a candy bar from the corner grocery store as a child, or embarrassing yourself over an unrequited teenage love, or maybe ripping your pants in public. Those moments, which now seem trivial, seemed colossal at the time they first occurred.
That said, I can't begin to imagine the level of embarrassment and shame Jussie Smollett must be feeling. I can't imagine waking up each day, and for that first brief second you're awake -- you feel human! Then, in a blink of an eye, you're reminded that you made the worse decision of your life and that people want nothing to do with you. You're a celebrity. You're in the spotlight. And everywhere you look social media is flooded with humiliating gifs, memes and cartoons of you being chased by the Loch Ness monster or Bigfoot wearing MAGA hats and carrying bleach. Your career is over. Your friends will soon be disappearing. You've become a pariah over a stupid decision you thought would work. You even rehearsed. It seemed so foolproof. Until it wasn't. And there's nothing you can do to take it back and erase the truth.
Yes, JS brought this on himself. I understand that. I understand people's disgust. I understand people wanting him to be justly punished. I get all that, I do. Still, that doesn't change the fact that this is a nightmare he can't wake up from. The walls are closing in on him. I only hope he has the support of someone close to him so things don't go from bad to worse.
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Post by MissGriss on Feb 22, 2019 4:11:10 GMT
I'm so happy for her! From what I've seen, she's pretty thrilled about it!
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Post by Critical on Feb 22, 2019 4:20:47 GMT
Guys, we don't allow political talk on this site any more and some posts are veering off topic and into politics. Please stay on topic and refrain from bringing in political issues to support your opinion.
Joseph, I feel sorry for Jussie too. I'm also really furious with him. This is on the same level for me as women who lie about sexual assault. There are people who use these false accusations as ammunition against the vast majority of people who are telling the truth about being attacked/assaulted. People who level false accusations make it that much harder for all the people who aren't lying (which is the overwhelming majority). This whole thing is just.....disappointing.
Whatever dimwitted reason has for enacting this ridiculous plan, it surely backfired on him in a major way and I wouldn't be surprised if he'd torpedoed his career for good. I don't watch Empire, but it sounds like Jussie is very talented. It's a shame he didn't believe he could achieve success with that talent.
From the beginning, the story smelled fishy to me, but I was reticent to voice my skepticism because I always try to believe the victim. I decided to just sit back and wait to see what happened. The thing with the noose is the first thing that sounded "off" to me. Also, how many black men would have a MAGA hat AND watch Empire? That just didn't track for me.
I'm always surprised that famous people think paying someone off will buy silence. If someone takes money for their silence, they know they can get more money. Plus, how loyal could a person be if they want money to keep a secret?
Eliza Dushku's definitely had a roller coaster year, hasn't she? I'm thrilled for her and hope she continues to be happy and healthy.
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Post by JoRyMom on Feb 22, 2019 4:33:01 GMT
Knowing all we do now, watching the Good Morning America Robin Roberts interview with Jussie is just crazy. He comes across as very smug to me. I didn’t know him from Adam before this. It’s very apparent he has issues, but I’m having a hard time feeling sorry for him.
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Post by Critical on Feb 22, 2019 4:41:52 GMT
I didn't know anything about him beyond that sitcom he and his sibs were on MANY years ago (which I didn't actually watch). I think me feeling sorry for him is more pity than sympathy.
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Post by momrek06 on Feb 22, 2019 5:28:48 GMT
I have been giving Jussie the benefit of the doubt up until today.
I prayed (and I do not know him, his acting, his singing or the show EMPIRE) for him but that is just me ... I will give anyone the benefit of the doubt until the evidence is just so mounted against that individual which I feel it has now happened to Jussie.
I think Jussie has to stop embarrassing himself and should come forward and just explain to America what actually happened. Is it really about hoping to get more pay ... as that sounds bizarre.
I saw snippets today of the Robin Roberts interview ... and ya, the way he spoke to her and what we know today. Looks so bad for him.
Also saw this online today ...... Jussie Smollett, an American actor is rumored to be Raven Symone's baby daddy. Apparently Symone's gay best friend donated his sperm to her so she could have a baby.
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Post by JosephD on Feb 22, 2019 11:34:17 GMT
Yes, "pity" is the perfect word. My feeling of empathy toward JS is more like "pity" than "sympathy."
I haven't watched Empire in a couple of years now, but I was an avid fan the first few seasons and so I'm familiar with Smollett's character. He was well-liked on the series, which makes his fall from grace even worse.
To those of you who say you've never heard of him before this debacle, you probably have but you just don't realize it. He was one of the little kids in the Emilio Estevez movie "The Mighty Ducks" from many, many years ago.
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Post by FannyMare on Feb 22, 2019 11:50:05 GMT
I have been giving Jussie the benefit of the doubt up until today. I prayed (and I do not know him, his acting, his singing or the show EMPIRE) for him but that is just me ... I will give anyone the benefit of the doubt until the evidence is just so mounted against that individual which I feel it has now happened to Jussie. I think Jussie has to stop embarrassing himself and should come forward and just explain to America what actually happened. Is it really about hoping to get more pay ... as that sounds bizarre. I saw snippets today of the Robin Roberts interview ... and ya, the way he spoke to her and what we know today. Looks so bad for him. Also saw this online today ...... Jussie Smollett, an American actor is rumored to be Raven Symone's baby daddy. Apparently Symone's gay best friend donated his sperm to her so she could have a baby. I'm hoping his lawyer tells him, rolling his eyes in court, making faces etc, is not going to help him. If he needs help, he earns sixty thousand, enough to get it! I hope he now, moves from front page news!
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Post by Critical on Feb 22, 2019 12:19:06 GMT
Yeah, it's hard to drum up sympathy for someone who makes $60K per episode for a TV show. It reminds me of a bit Bill Maher did on his show years ago in reference to certain rich folks complaining about claiming they were being persecuted because they were rich. His reaction was, "Oh, you poor, sad millionaires." He also maintained that people who complain that they're being persecuted for being rich, should be persecuted for being rich I think, at times, these people are so out of touch with reality that they don't even understand how out of touch they are. Every time I read about some celebrity divorce and the child support/alimony numbers, I just roll my eyes. There's always an ex-wife (or ex-husband) complaining that $25K is not enough per month to live on I want to say, "Try minimum wage, honey."
Clearly, there's something else going on with Jussie. Whether it's just Olympic level entitlement or actual mental illness, I don't know. Either way, his attorney and other reps need to reign him in and get him to stop acting against his own best interests.
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Post by dagwood on Feb 22, 2019 14:32:59 GMT
I'm siding with mental illness. The defense lawyers I work with would look into that angle, for sure. Also, I am sure the reason he is not talking about this is that his attorney told him not to. It's hard to mount a decent defense if the client has verbal diarreha all over the place. Especially in something as high profile as this.
I feel bad for him as well. This is definitely not something a stable person would do, IMO.
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Post by acookertv on Feb 22, 2019 14:44:58 GMT
I can't ignore the impact that our current rage culture may play in all of this, because both the letter sent to Smollet (now being said that he sent to himself) and the description of the attackers gave a political slant to the motivations. There have been multiple stories in the news over the past few years about people who become so obsessive in their views, and feel such anger and rage towards opposing views that they turn violent. We've seen it result in a shooting on a softball field, mail bombs sent to a number of high profile political figures, and the story yesterday about a man who was gathering an arsenal and planning attacks. It's not all political, but a lot of it is. We've accepted that a normal part of our culture is to compete with rage and anger when things happen that we don't approve of. Heck, if I'm being introspective on the observation, while it does not reach NEARLY the levels that it has in the incidents I've listed here, I've got to admit that on some of the on line discussion boards I participate in - including FORT perhaps - discussions are often fueled by anger towards people we don't approve of. Now I'd argue that it's healthier to get out those feelings in an environment like this where we can both express outrage and laugh over the reality stars that infuriate us. But I also recognize there are people who feel those feelings of outrage and disgust and don't have a healthy outlet to get it out. It can't be said with certainty, but I would entertain the idea that Smollet may have allowed himself to get so worked up over fears for things happening in this world, and anger towards people promoting views he disagrees with - or finds threatening - that he may have seen this as a way to make a point against those he got the most worked up over. Looking at what we do know, that seems more plausible to me than the notion that he wanted a higher profile and saw this as a way to get a raise. That whole storyline comes across to me as something someone uninformed speculated about and it spread like wildlfire. That's not something we've seen done often. But we are seeing more people who allow their rage and anger to build to a level of doing things that are dangerous and unhinged. Why should we believe that just because Smollet had some level of fame that he could be immune to pushing himself to that level?
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Post by momrek06 on Feb 22, 2019 15:50:50 GMT
Jussie Smollett apologizes to the 'Empire' cast and crew but insists that he's innocent
www.cnn.com/2019/02/22/entertainment/jussie-smollett-empire-meeting/index.htmlAs a side note....I was so surprised that Jussie even went to the set and could concentrate on filming esp after the day he had. *****Breaking News just now is that FOX/EMPIRE executives have removed JS from the final two episodes of EMPIRE. I don't have an article yet to post. Its scrolling on CNN.com.
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Post by libgirl2 on Feb 22, 2019 15:57:07 GMT
The chief of police said this "Why would anyone, especially an African-American man, use the symbolism of a noose to make false accusations? How could someone look at the hatred and suffering associated with that symbol and see an opportunity to manipulate that symbol to further his own public profile?" Right? I don't know what's wrong with Jussie..that his mind went there. I guess it would have the most "impact"?
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Post by libgirl2 on Feb 22, 2019 15:58:56 GMT
I didn't know anything about him beyond that sitcom he and his sibs were on MANY years ago (which I didn't actually watch). I think me feeling sorry for him is more pity than sympathy. I remember that sitcom!
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lonnie
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Post by lonnie on Feb 22, 2019 16:22:32 GMT
He was in the most recent Alien movie also.
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Post by momrek06 on Feb 22, 2019 16:29:02 GMT
Yeah, it's hard to drum up sympathy for someone who makes $60K per episode for a TV show. Watching CNN now and they have quite a few people on speaking about the JS case. One of them is the Host of Entertainment Tonight Nichelle Turner who clarified that Jussie is actually making $100,000.00 an episode. His original contract with EMPIRE was $65,000 per episode for 7 years. BUT because the show was a MAJOR HIT .... 4 years IN ... everyone received outstanding increases. This is when JS went to $100,000 PER EPISODE. Despite being taken off the last two episodes, JS will still get the $200,000.00 contractually. Ms. Turner also said that half the cast want him gone and half the cast feel sorry for him. EMPIRE is saying we are removing JS because this case has become a distraction to the set. www.cnn.com/2019/02/22/entertainment/jussie-smollett-cut-empire/index.html
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Post by Amy Lee on Feb 22, 2019 16:36:20 GMT
Yeah, it's hard to drum up sympathy for someone who makes $60K per episode for a TV show. Watching CNN now and they have quite a few people on speaking about the JS case. One of them is the Host of Entertainment Tonight Nichelle Turner who clarified that Jussie is actually making $100,000.00 an episode. His original contract with EMPIRE was $65,000 per episode for 7 years. BUT because the show was a MAJOR HIT .... 4 years IN ... everyone received outstanding increases. This is when JS went to $100,000 PER EPISODE. Despite being taken off the last two episodes, JS will still get the $200,000.00 contractually. Ms. Turner also said that half the cast want him gone and half the cast feel sorry for him. EMPIRE is saying we are removing JS because this case has become a distraction to the set. This is why I question the 'not being paid enough' as the motive. Under no circumstances would he ever have been paid as much as Taraji and/or Terrence. Jeebus, what the hell, Jussie??
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Post by libgirl2 on Feb 22, 2019 16:50:17 GMT
$100K an episode is really good! I mean REALLY good! Is he that big of a star to demand more?
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Post by pikachu on Feb 22, 2019 18:11:55 GMT
I wish I got $100,000 for my work, even if I just got one lump sum in that amount per year! It'd sure beat what I earn now. I'd like to see him get by on my salary, then he can tell me if he still has any complaints about his salary.
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Post by FannyMare on Feb 22, 2019 18:30:12 GMT
$100K an episode is really good! I mean REALLY good! Is he that big of a star to demand more? I'd go with a no, on that!
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Post by momrek06 on Feb 22, 2019 18:38:38 GMT
$100K an episode is really good! I mean REALLY good! Is he that big of a star to demand more? And he has a contract that he SIGNED for 7 years at $65,000 and then because the show was such a HIT, that TPTB just gave everyone an increase and JS went to $100,000 per episode. Now he wants more and he does THIS to alert everyone to his IMPORTANCE????
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Post by libgirl2 on Feb 22, 2019 20:07:13 GMT
$100K an episode is really good! I mean REALLY good! Is he that big of a star to demand more? And he has a contract that he SIGNED for 7 years at $65,000 and then because the show was such a HIT, that TPTB just gave everyone an increase and JS went to $100,000 per episode. Now he wants more and he does THIS to alert everyone to his IMPORTANCE???? This might not be a popular opinion but I think he is a classic case of narcissism or over self importance.
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